Woodstock VT: A Winter Weekend of Outdoor Activities
Vermont is loaded with quaint villages and covered bridges, but Woodstock stands tall even in state that’s chockfull of adorable.
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Families have most everything at the Azul Beach Resort on Rivieria Maya
Welcome to Azul Beach Resort Riviera Maya by Karisma, just 20 minutes from Cancun Airport and just 148 recently renovated rooms with everything, including SpongeBob SquarePants
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Azul The Fives – An all-inclusive with practically everything
The smiling woman is making them with fresh corn tortillas in the heart of the plaza. But we’re not in Playa del Carmen’s famous pedestrian Fifth Avenue. We’re just outside Playa del Carmen at Azul Beach Resort The Fives Plaza
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On the Riviera Maya – Suites for big family groups at Generations by Karisma
Welcome to the 144-suite Generations, a Karisma resort about 40 minutes from Cancun. Did I mention grandparents can get a one bedroom unit free this year with a two-bedroom unit for their family? Nice too!
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Terranea, A Southern California Resort Respite
Perched on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, Terranea is a rambling resort on 102 acres of land, pristine and brimming with flora and fauna
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How about a quick pre-holiday getaway?
Make it an overnight when you head to see that favorite holiday light display or museum exhibit. Go see Santa somewhere else besides the mall.
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A Mother-Daughter Yoga Retreat To Kripalu in the Berkshires
Kripalu, a wellness retreat in the beautiful Berkshires, offers guests a flexible program with the opportunity to practice as much or as little yoga as desired.
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Finding the Elixir of Life on Amelia Island FL
At the TMS Family Travel conference held on Amelia Island Nov. 10-12, I experienced how one man’s passion for the culinary arts can convey an aura of wellness over an entire resort
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Plenty of options for lodging in Clearwater FL
Just before sunset at the Hyatt Regency Clearwater, kids are in the pool on the eighth floor while parents are nearby nursing a cocktail. The beach is spread out below us.
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Inspired by “Frozen,” families flock to Norway
Not only have spunky Princess Anna and ethereal Queen Elsa stolen the hearts of little girls everywhere, but they’ve significantly contributed to the increasing number of tourists visiting Norway
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At Vista Verde Ranch in Colorado – on a different kind of snow vacation
I wondered when I planned this trip if my gang of grown kids, who love nothing more than tearing down those steep slopes, would like a more laid-back holiday — at least for a few days on a week-long winter trip to Colorado. I needn’t have worried.
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On a family vacation in Portugal
Since 2010, Martinhal Family Hotels & Resorts in Lisbon, Portugal have been providing family-friendly luxury accommodations, gourmet meals, facilities and activities to provide memorable holidays to family groups of all sizes and ages.
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A spa treatment with a Balinese Guru
I am a fan of spas—especially on vacation—as a way for moms (and dads) to decompress and get some much needed “me time.”
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Fall is Family Time on Mexico’s Pacific Coast
Fall is family time along Mexico’s Pacific Coast whether you want to take a bike ride around town, practice your Spanish, head to a local festival or relax at an all-inclusive resort
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Getting slimed at Nick Punta Cana Resort
This upscale, all-inclusive 208-suite resort, a partnership of Karisma Hotels & Resorts and Viacom International Media Networks, is the first all-inclusive to have been built as a themed resort from the ground up
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Spa or Slime or Both? Last Day at Nick Punta Cana
The beautiful Vassa Spa at the new Nickelodeon Hotel & Resort in Punta Cana has an 11-step “ritual hydrotherapy “program that comes with a spa treatment, complete with a “spa butler”
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Are Kids’ Clubs passe? At Nick Punta Cana Families Relish Time Together
The just-opened Nickelodeon Hotel & Resort in Punta Cana has a well-appointed kids’ club with cooking lessons, arts and crafts, a wide selection of toys, games (video and board games) and a slide that lands you in a pool of brightly colored plastic balls. But most of the families I’ve met have been keeping their kids with them.
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Families Flocking to New Nickelodeon Hotel and Resort in Dominican Republic
It was a no brainer for his family and three others —10 kids aged 3-9 and eight adults—to choose the brand new Nickelodeon Hotel & Resort in Punta Cana, a partnership of Karisma Hotels & Resorts and Viacom International Media Networks.
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Grapevine TX – not just a place near the airport but family central
Grapevine, TX, 10 minutes from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and in between the two North Texas cities, hosts some 20 million visitors a year, more than half from out of state.
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Take me back to Chicago – for a father-son weekend and the Cubs!
Taking the Kids goes back to where it all began — Chicago — and a father-son weekend with the Cubs playing the Cardinals at Wrigley Field.
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Yurts Give Families a Modern Alternative to Camping at YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch
By staying in a yurt at YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch, you can enjoy the outdoors without the annoyances of lurking bears, determined bugs and cumbersome sleeping bags.
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Exploring history and viewing the modern at Disneyland
Walt Disney was tapped out. The construction of Disneyland was taking nearly every penny he had. A kid-friendly, upscale hotel next to a theme park seems like a slam-dunk, but not in the early ’50s
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Snowmass in Summer – cool air and lots of family activities
After an arduous 16 mile hike yesterday, I’m at The Spa at Viceroy Snowmass while an experienced massage therapist ministers to my aching legs and shoulders.
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Saving on a family summer beach vacation
A trip to the beach is a perfect summer getaway — and a bargain too. As long as you opt for a destination that’s off-season in summer — like the Caribbean or Arizona — you can have your pick of deals.
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A Family Getaway To Kennebunkport, Maine
Kennebunkport is loaded with New England charm. The pedestrian-friendly streets are brimming with retro sweet shops, folksy art galleries and authentic lobster shacks.
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Tauck’s latest European river boat — extra space for families
I’ve never seen a nicer bathroom onboard a river ship. It’s so spacious! It has a rain shower. And as the MS Joy boasts more suites and fewer guests than other similarly sized vessels, it is a good bet for families.
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An Austrian monastery underappreciated by the Hapsburgs
Today, the Benedictine Abbey “Gottweig” may be the most famous symbol of this region—a huge complex at the top of the mountain that houses, besides the gorgeous church, a youth center, inn and one building that was built for the Hapsburgs to stay though they never did and boasting the largest staircase in all of Austria.
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Rained out in Austria? No chance
We’re about an hour northwest of Vienna—a great place for a respite after city touring, The entire area is famous for its abbeys, churches, castles, picturesque villages and hiking and cycling. The best part—It’s not at all crowded!
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Taking the Kids on a once in a lifetime adventure
Millennial families, according to the new 2016 MMGY Portrait of American Travelers, are more likely than millennial couples or singles, to travel internationally
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To Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Welcome to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most visited national park in the country with nearly 10 million visitors a year — twice what the Grand Canyon gets.
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10 Family Pleasing activities in Edinburgh, Scotland
Check out Daigon Alley! Not at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando or Hollywood, but in Victoria Street in Edinburgh, Scotland, where J.K. Rowling famously wrote the first Harry Potter book while seated in a local coffee shop.
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Green Chile Cheesburgers and Bubbling Hot Springs
It’s a risk as well as an adventure – stopping for a green chile cheeseburger lunch (a New Mexico specialty) at a grocery store/gas station along the state’s Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail.
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Vacationing like a 1 percenter in a staffed villa in Jamaica
It’s easy to see why these vacations are so popular with multigenerational families. No one is doing all the chores that typically come with a house rental.
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Affordable Aspen – families enjoying the amenities and vibes of the famous ski town
Lest you think Aspen is only for celebs and wealthy Hollywood types, there’s plenty affordable here—starting with the Limelight Hotel with rates under $200 a night
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Angeleno Goes Full Cowboy in Colorado
At the Vista Verde Guest Ranch, it turns ranch life ain’t so bad. It also turns out, a city slicker can really look really really ridiculously awesome wearing a Cowboy hat.
At the Vista Verde Guest Ranch
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In Aspen, a hotel with great vibes and amenities – The Limelight
We’re atop Ajax—as Aspen Mountain is known—with just a handful of others for “First Tracks” at 8:15 a.m.—before the Mountain has opened.
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The mountain or the ranch – so many great choices
The staff at Vista Verde Ranch, about 25 miles outside the ski town of Steamboat Springs has obligingly left us an Evening Sky Map for this month.
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Combining ski vacation and dude ranch in the Colorado Rockies
This year, I decided to mix it up—opting to spend half our winter ski week at a dude ranch, Vista Verde Ranch, on 500-plus gorgeous acres about 25 miles outside of Steamboat Springs and as far away from the crowds and tumult of a major ski area as you can get.
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10 ways to save money on spring break
on vacation, free is great — a lot better than paying for meals the kids don’t eat, theme park tickets when they’d rather play in the hotel pool or museum entry fees when they are ready to leave in less than an hour.
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Meeting the locals in Jamaica: a great family experience
We were brought together by a volunteer program called Meet the People, which has been bringing tourists and locals together for more than 50 years over a shared interest — in our case, cooking and food. meeting the locals in Jamaica Did I mention the program is free? The volunteers will even come and pick you up.
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Bumpkins on a river cruise in Jamaica. Seriously
Seriously. We are at River Bumpkin Farm and have floated down about 1.5 miles of the 75-mile long river.
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A private villa in Jamaica with a homey feel and lots of space
We are eating dinner on the terrace listening to the ocean, feasting on Caribbean lobster. No we aren’t at a tony restaurant in Jamaica. We are at Serenity on the Beach, one of the 100 private villas in Jamaica managed by Villas by Linda Smith.
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Setting standards for family vacation – Half Moon Resort Jamaica
John Bartels has no interest in going home. He, his two sisters, and his parents have been spending a vacation week at Half Moon, a Rock Resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica, that has been setting a high bar for resorts here for more than 50 years
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Safari Clothing Packing List: What women should wear
The result of packing for a safari cannot be the scene of Meryl Streep traveling to the Ngong Hills in Out of Africa, and it doesn’t need to be.
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Fun in the snow off the ski slopes
It may be Christmas week, but we’re as far from a mall and city crowds as we can get. We’re hiking the Crawford Trail, the longest continually used trail in the country, snow crunching under our feet
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The sights, sounds and scents of Tokyo, Japan
It is eight in the morning and we are a few blocks from the hotel at Tokyo’s famous Tsukiji Fish Market, Japan’ largest. More than 15,000 people work here; international tourists line up in the early hours of the morning for the chance to watch the famous fish auctions,
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Westin Gets it Right for Families in Berlin
Westin and Le Meridien Hotels have just introduced new family programs, they say, in response to a changing global demand for family travel. Rather than focusing on a kids club, this idea stresses that playing “knows no borders or language barriers but rather inspires kids to explore learn and build relationships.”
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The Disneyland Hotel celebrates 60 years of putting families first
At a time when hotels catered to businessmen, not families, Walt Disney thought there should be a place where families could continue the fun they had in Disneyland. On the same day.
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So much invention in Seattle: Inspiration for Kids
The Museum of History and Industry, now in the historic Naval Reserve Armory at Lake Union Park, boasts the largest heritage organization in Washington State with nearly 4 million artifacts. It is a good place to start any family visit to Seattle.
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Ireland’s Ashford Castle: very popular with American families
Ashford Castle, in western Ireland on 350 acres along the shores of Lough Corrib and the River Cong, is famous for its fishing and falconry but if you’re a boy just staying in a bona-fide castle is the real attraction.
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To a Colorado resort that’s no longer hard to reach
Tiny Telluride is a popular place. Nestled in the San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado, the mountain range has the highest concentration of 13,000 and 14,000 foot peaks in North America
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A local tour of Seattle’s Pike Place Market
We’ve signed on for Seattle’s only chef-led tour of the market with Elizabeth McClure’ new company Eat Seattle Tours. She also does cooking classes in the Market’s Atrium Kitchen, shopping with the students first for ingredients .
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Hotels restaurants increasingly focusing on local food and healthy choices
It is Friday night in Seattle. But what’s interesting is the Sazerac with its distinctive chandeliers and hip-but-casual vibe and food best described as modern South meets Northwest is in Kimpton’s Monaco Hotel.
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What for dinner in Tokyo? How about 14 courses, small but delicious?
If you think a 14-course dinner might be a little much to handle, come sample Chef Kenichiro Ooe’s fare at Kozue on the 40th floor of the Park Hyatt Tokyo with stellar views of the city.
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Visiting a traditional Japanese Ryokan — not your ordinary hotel
Welcome to the traditional Japanese Riokan. There are these hotels all around Japan, some in the mountains, which offer the chance to try the Japanese hot springs baths called onseng
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Touring Kyoto with locals and on bikes: seeing more than temples
Kyoto is famous for its Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. This morning, we’re cycling a 14-mile loop with Kyoto Cycling Tour Project with stops at the Golden Pavilion and Ryoanji Temple with its world-famous rock garden – two of the city’s and Japan’s top tourist attractions.
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At the Tokyo Fish Market: mixing culture and tradition in unique culinary ways
It is eight in the morning and we are at Tokyo’s famous Tsukiji Fish Market, Japan’ largest. More than 15,000 people work here; international tourists line up in the early hours of the morning for the chance to watch the famous auctions of the fish, including the tuna.
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A long flight to Japan – jet lag cured with spa treatment at Conrad Tokyo
The Mizuki Spa at the Conrad Tokyo is the largest spa of its kind in Tokyo and boasts Tokyo’s only true Hinoki bath. Treatments are inspired by the moon and the water.
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Jake and Tobey go on a Safari in Style in Tanzania
Jake and Tobey Bill, ages 12 and 13 from Weston CT, went on a “Safari In Style” tour of Tanzania with the tour operator Abercrombie & Kent. They had heard great things about Africa and watched a few PBS specials about it, but nothing prepared them for what them saw and experienced in this amazing place.
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New York City in August – good time for families to visit
New York, of course, is always tops on tweens and teens lists of wanna-go places. If you have a few days before school starts, it turns out August is a good time. Sure it may be hot, but with business travelers scarce, you are likely to get a good hotel deal.
